Simpcw First Nation blazing and maintaining trails
BARRIERE, B.C. — The Simpcw First Nation is developing British Columbia’s first-ever First Nations owned and operated mountain biking trail maintenance company.
In 2015 the Simpcw McBride to Barriere Corridor Trail and Mountain Bike Recreation and Tourism Initiative received more than $50,000 in government funding to conduct a study on mountain biking in the Thompson Nicola Regional District, and how jobs could be created within the mountain bike recreation and tourism industry.
A professional trail maintenance crew was one of the recommendations laid out in the 91-page report.
Simpcw First Nation councillor Tom Eustache, along with other community members, have been building mountain biking trails for several years, so it seemed only natural to learn how to maintain them.